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GLENNON
DOYLE

TODAY WE TAKE BACK MOTHER’S DAY BY MOTHERING THE MOTHERLESS

May 3, 2016

LOVE WARRIORS: I have a secret to tell you. It’s about Mother’s Day.

You know the story the world has told you about Mother’s Day: that it’s a Hallmark holiday only about staying home and snuggling up and opening gifts and having pedicures and brunch with our little tribe?

It’s a lie. Mother’s Day was never about brunch.

Listen to me you guys, because this is the best, most awesome thing I know. Mother’s Day wasn’t created by Hallmark. Mother’s Day was created by ONE OF US — a grieved, activist, revolutionary Love Warrior named Julia Ward Howe. Tired of war, tired of tribalism being valued above the lives of the vulnerable — her pain and hope merged and became her mission. After living through the bloodshed of the Civil War, she called out for revolution.

She called the day of the revolution: MOTHER’S DAY.

“Women need no longer be made a party to proceedings which fill the globe with grief and horror. That word should now be heard, and answered to as never before!

Arise, then, women of this day! Arise, all women who have hearts! Whether your baptism be that of water or of tears! Let us meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead. Let us then solemnly take council with each other as to the means whereby the great human family can live in peace, man as the brother of man, each bearing after his own kind the sacred impress, not of Caesar, but of God!”

—Julia Ward Howe and her original Mother’s Day Proclamation, written in 1870

Feel ambivalent about Mother’s Day? Me too. That’s because we didn’t know the truth of it. Now we do.

LOVE WARRIORS: Today, in the spirit of Ms. Howe and every other Revolutionary for Love:

LET US TAKE BACK MOTHER’S DAY BY MOTHERING THE MOTHERLESS.

HERE IS OUR INVITATION:

On any given night in Europe, tens of thousands of refugee children are cold, hungry, and alone. While fleeing from war, they’ve lost their parents—temporarily or forever. Through partnering with Help Refugees, The Compassion Collective has worked to save, heal, feed, shelter and comfort these little ones for months. For months now, our funds have been feeding 6,450 of our sisters and brothers and babies every DAY. The funds we used are now gone. But we are the ones they’ve come to count on. We will not let them down. We will keep feeding them, sheltering them, pulling them from the water and lighting the dark when they are afraid at night. We will do this to honor our own mothers, our own children, our own gratitude and heartbreak and hope. This Mother’s Day, we will continue to mother these motherless children of ours.

On even given night in America, over 200,000 homeless youth sleep on our streets. 40% of these kids are LGBTQ+. Many of these precious ones lost their families through rejection. Another 40% have been a part of the foster care system. These beloved ones never had a forever family. This Mother’s Day, we will begin to mother these motherless children of ours. Abroad and at home. Because Love is not either/or. Love is Both/And. Let’s allow the children of the world to unite us. Let us remember that since we are ONE human family — there is No Such Thing As Other People’s Children.

You guys. For the past few months, every night I lie in bed, stare at the ceiling, and think: My God. This is no longer hypothetical. This Love Revolution is no longer a wish or a dream or a vision. WE ARE DOING IT. Through our work with Help Refugees, we have become an internationally recognized leader in refugee humanitarian aid. Now we will become trailblazing leaders of love at home, too.

We have become the leaders we were waiting for.

Together, we are leaving our mark on the world and our mark is radical, relentless, dangerous love that reaches BEYOND ourselves and BEYOND our neighborhoods and races and religions and rules and borders and differences and fear. Our love insists that there is no such thing as other people’s children – that there is no peace for a parent until all children have peace- and that there is no rest for a child of God until all children of God can rest. So this Mother’s Day: let the politics rage on — we will give and heal and serve and sing.

You are all are welcome to join us today. Men, women, children. Those who had perfect mothers and those whose mothers could not love you the way you deserved to be loved. Those whose mothers abused and neglected and abandoned you. Those who have happy families and sad families, married mamas and single mamas and fathers doing the fathering and mothering. Those who’ve lost mothers and those who are losing beloved mothers right now. Those mothers who’ve lost children. Those mothers whose children are lost. Those mothers whose children are sick. Those who are trying to become mothers. The aunties who mother by nurturing the life in people and animals and plants and whose particular type of mothering is vital to the world. Those mothers who can’t find a moment to yourself and mothers who can’t find a single person to celebrate you. Join us. All. We need ALL to heal the world. Especially the brokenhearted.

Mother’s Day was never about waiting to be celebrated. It was about joining in this movement that says, Whether we’re raising them or not, we are all mothers of this brutiful world, sent to nurture life in a million different ways. Let’s CELEBRATE MOTHER’S DAY in the spirit of that revolutionary, universal love that proclaims: WE ARE OUR BROTHERS’ AND SISTERS’ AND BABIES’ KEEPERS, and let’s watch our gratitude and peace and power and children rise together.

Giving in honor of my mother who is still an example of grace though she is in the midst of Alzheimer’s Disease and my mother-in-law who was taken much too early this past December in a car accident. She was a shining example of Showing Up!

Yes yes yes!!!! I have long felt a Deep desire to mother the motherless. After having to server ties with the people who raised me (they don’t deserve a title that infers unconditional love), I am even more driven to help lgbt youth who need that unconditional love (I am bisexual). My husband and kids are behind me. So if anyone knows HOW to help these beautiful youth, please help me. My arms are aching to hug them and let them know they are amazing. I’m in FL. every child deserves a loving family.

Done, in honor of the child I was too afraid to have nine years ago. I am so s,o sorry my sweet little angel. I thought I was not ready, it was too early, I thought I couldn’t do it all. I didn’t know what I know now, that nobody could ever possibly be ready to be a mother, that nothing on Earth can prepare you for motherhood. I know it now, so I can declare myself ready for it. I am ready for you to come back, my tiny little one. Please, please come back…

Dear French Caro, my heart goes out to you. May I suggest you get hold of a little book called “Jesse found in heaven” by Chris Pringle. It has brought peace and turned my mourning into joy to learn where my ‘unplanned and unable to cope’ aborted grandchild is. I pray that you too can find healing and wholeness as you learn what happens to these tiny and much loved little ones. May Jesus shine his light and love on you and give you your heart’s desire. Love Jude 🙂

Thank you so much. My fear is that maybe I refused to have the only child I was ever meant to have. Life happened, time went by, I am afraid it will soon be too late for me : I will be 40 in september and the potential father acts as if I had all the time in the world. Maybe he truly thinks he agrees to finally have a child, but he doesn’t act like it’s true. Sometimes I think it would be easier to let go of the hope; it leaves me exhausted month after month. It’s an emotional rollercoaster. Hope, disappointment, grief, hope again. I long for some joy…

My eyes got teary from gratitude while reading your answer. I am usually a joyful person, finding God in all kinds of tiny little things all day long, so it’s strange feeling this lack of joy lately. I feel like wanting to have a baby and not getting it is sucking the joy out of me, as this obsession doesn’t let me think of much anything else. That’s why I wonder if it would’nt be easier to let go of the hope, turning the page and accepting the fact that I won’t be a mother in this life, so I can be myself again. But NOT hoping is hard, because I am an optimistic person too… As you can see, I’m kind of torn. But hey, it could be worse : I love my job, I love my man, he loves me back, I still have my mother to love on and I have a bunch of amazing sisters here who won’t judge me as I rant about what I don’t have, while there are so many people who don’t have the luck I have. Feeling grateful. Thank you for sistering me, I truly needed it today. I don’t know you, but I love you all. Thank you Glennon for creating the space where this kind of love is possible.
Whenever I will be tempted to whine, I will be thinking of my sisters and it will bring me joy.

Glennon, I would really love to know if there is any organization attempting to reunite the refugee children with their parents? I have not heard of any such effort but know that social media has been used in other disasters to help people reconnect.

I could do this for my amazing mom, for my sweet little girl, or any number of incredible women and children in my life. Instead, I donated in honor of my sister Angi, who is fighting like hell to get her life back together, to stay clean, and be the mama her babies (teenaged, but babies nonetheless) need. I never thought I would send Carry on Warrior to a jail, but where else can it do so much good??

Never have I felt so good about Mother’s Day! Done in honor of my Mother, gone long before she could meet her grandchildren, and that leaves me breathless every day. Spreading love and healing will help me catch my breath today, and hopefully, even more for others. Let’s do this!!! 🙂

Done. For the 16-year-old who knows everything and thinks he doesn’t need me anymore.
Well, guess what kiddo: I love you best no matter what!
(and no, you’re not driving to California by yourself with my car)

Serving and giving love to others…in doing so, I receive all that I need from the universe. given in honor of all those who hurt, especially my friend who will be celebrating her first mother’s day without her precious eight year old…spreading love heals.

Donated in memory of my beautiful sister-in-law, Stephanie Leonards Roman, who lost her battle with cancer 7 years ago at the age of 35. She was an amazing and devoted mother to 3 beautiful babies and her light continues to shine through them. She would want nothing more than to know that we are taking care of all of the babies without mothers and I am proud to do my small part in making sure that happens.

Done! In honor of the beautiful little girl who made me a mother – my oldest daughter, Kaiya, who is celebrating her seventh birthday today. I can’t wait to show her how a little bit from a lot of people can make a huge difference.

My daughter is gay, too. She is lucky because her mama has always been a huge supporter of gay rights (before she was even born). She is also lucky to have a supportive father, stepmom, stepdad, grandma, & friends. I pray that she continues to feel the love & support from friends & family that she has thus far. It BREAKS MY HEART to see parents turn their backs on their LBGTQ children. It is an honor to donate every.single.time Glennon asks. I can’t think of a better way to commemorate Mother’s Day.

In honor of the captivating Mama that God continues to bless me with. I am an Auntie who has longed to be a mommy. Thank you for validating the kind of mothering we offer and that this particular mothering is vital to the world. Here’s to taking back Mother’s Day! Blessings & love unending.

Priscilla, I think that Aunties are the best kind of special moms… Close enough to know the truth and care deeply, and just distanced enough to allow for a different kind of trust and faith to blossom. I’m often in awe of my little sister as she Aunties my kids.. She and I are both great Moms, but she is a special kind of special as an Auntie and I look up to her for it.

Thanks for the special kind of special that you bring into the world.. I’m also so grateful that Glennon included that in our love warrioring.. Happy DAY!